Why did my target stand levitate?

[56hawk]

Shot a milk jug full of water, and the 55 gallon drum it was sitting on jumped over two feet in the air. Not sure why, but it sure looked cool.



Here is a link to the video:

http://youtu.be/ktQd6iiCNJk

 

[chris in va]

Hydrostatic pressure and an elastic (plastic) barrel. Water jugs expand in all directions when shot, including down.

Here's a slo-mo example.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ftrCtOyLrmU

 

[Fast Frank]

Yes.

Shot hits jug.

Jug sends energy flying in all directions by way of fast moving water.

Energy from shot jug pushes top of barrel down, possibly several inches.

At some point, the springiness of the plastic barrel stops the downward motion, and begins accelerating the top of the blue barrel back toward where it is supposed to be.

Having flown off in all directions, the milk jug and it's water offers no resistance to the springing back up barrel top.

When the top of the barrel reaches it's original position, the inertia from it's velocity wants to keep it moving... so it does

The speed and mass of the upwardly moving barrel top lifts the whole barrel off the ground.

If you look into it, the action on a lot of gas operated guns works on this same principal.

 

[56hawk]

That was my thinking that the barrel was acting like a giant spring. Wish I had a high speed camera, because going frame by frame the barrel is rising as the milk jug is being hit:

 

[Trent]

Yikes. That looks like it might have kicked just a little.

 

[Walkalong]

Is that a Ruger?

 

[56hawk]

Is that a Ruger?

It's a CZ 550 in 600 Overkill.

 

[jerkface11]

It's a CZ 550 in 600 Overkill

And you wonder why it makes stuff jump off the ground?

 

[torqem]

I'd rob the Mob in a heartbeat, if I could get a million bucks in one haul, all 100 $ bills. I'
d just leave the country, get some cosmetic surgery, other ID, and kick back, perfectly safe.

 

[lindy]

You bounced it like a ball, Neat

 

[theotherwaldo]

I think you startled the poor thing. Did you apologize afterward?

 

[Drail]

Many years ago when I taught my wife to shoot she loved it when we would set up empty Pennzoil quart bottles at the 50 yard berm and plink them with Ruger MK IIs. When she discovered that carefully placing the bullet just under the bottle would cause it to jump 10 or 12 feet up into the air she become a master class shooter. The game became who could get the most altitude with the bottle. I still smile when I think about it. The next phase was of course, bowling pins on a table with a .45 auto.

 

[230RN]

^
Found that out with the "tin can races" a buddy of mine and I used to have. Shoot at tin cans and see who could get them furthest with some number of shots, or who could reach a goal line first. I started to win consistently when I discovered placing a bullet just under them was the trick.

"But you missed! Those shots don't count!"

After I 'splained it, he admitted being bested and bought the beers later on.

The scoundrel then started beating me the next time we were afield. He was a better shot than me anyhow.

So I bought the beers that time.

Terry, 230RN

 

[Fremmer]

Paranormal activity. Something - or someone - really likes that gun!!!